>From: Gilbert Sebenste <address@hidden> >Organization: NIU >Keywords: 199910062147.PAA18740 McIDAS-X 7.60 Gilbert, >I wanted to install the latest version of McIDAS on my Linux 6.0 box. I >need to know a couple of things: > >1) Is there a binary version available? No, McIDAS is too big to create a binary installation. At some point in the future, I want convert the executables to use a shared McIDAS library, but that is not in this distribution. >If so, where, and >if not, is there >any way I could get assistance from you or a UNIDATA staff member in >installing it? It is pretty easy if the online instructions are followed. But, yes, I am available to help sites do a proper installation. There are also a number of entries in the McIDAS online support system that are blow-by-blows of how to do a complete McIDAS installation and configuration. The other thing that I will be encouraging you to do is to install the McIDAS ADDE remote server. I will soon be asking the close to 30 sites that have installed this if they are willing to act as each other's realtime data backup sites. ADDE makes it easy for a site to view another's holdings; load data; and copy all or portions of datasets. This network transparency makes it easy to do collaborative things. All I can say is that ADDE is cool! >And what is the McIDAS passowrd now? I am including the note I send to everyone getting the user name and password at the bottom of this email. The access information is buried inside (but please read all of it). >2) I have an older version of McIDAS (the one previous to this release) on >my system already, but I guess I'd have to overwrite everything. Any files >I need to back up? If you created any custom BATCH or McBASI (e.g. RUN) files; if you modified any of the BATCH/McBASI files in the distribution; if you created new enhancement/stretch tables, etc; then you need to back them up before you do an installation. The installation does copy all of the BATCH and McBASI files from ~mcidas/data into ~mcidas/savedata on installation, but if one runs into snags and does a second installation, the first set of saved files gets overwritten by the second. If you modify any of our BATCH files in the distribution for PostProcess production of products, then you would do well to copy your modified versions to the ~mcidas/workdata directory. There, the files will not be overwritten, and they will still be used by the PostProcess system (e.g. batch.k) since they will be in the first directory in the user 'mcidas' MCPATH. >Thanks, as always, for any and all assistance! No problem. Please read the various notes and look through the online documentation BEFORE you attempt to build the distribution. As a reminder, the primary contact for McIDAS at a site should be subscribed to our McIDAS-X email list so that s/he will be made aware of important changes/additions/bugfixes to the distribution. You can subscribe online through the following web page: http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/mailing-list-form.html The 7.60 distribution of McIDAS-X is Y2K capable. Please note the following: 1). As of the 7.40 release, we no longer provide hardcopy documentation for Unidata McIDAS. Instead, we have made all of the documentation accessible online in various links under: http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/pacakges/mcidas/mcx We also make PostScript (tm) files of the SSEC portion of the McIDAS-X documentation available. Please look at the unix/760/docs directory and it subdirectories for these files. 2). Please do not hesitate to report inconsistencies or omissions in our online documentation. Since it is relatively new, there are bound to be things that need modification. 3). McIDAS-X should be installed in an account named 'mcidas'. 4). The McIDAS-X remote ADDE server be setup in an account named 'mcadde'. 5). Do _NOT_ do a 'make clobber' after installing 7.60. The object files and McIDAS-X and -XCD libraries will need to be there so that upgrades can be easily integrated into the 7.60 installation. 6). Please do not hesitate to ask for assistance when building, installing, or configuring Unidata McIDAS-X. The cleaner the installation on your end, the easier it will be for you to use and update and the easier it will be for us to support. 7). As promised in the Known Problems page for McIDAS-X 7.50, there have been major refinements in the configuration of the Unidata NIDS and NOWrad (tm) servers. 8). There will be continual changes to this and future releases of McIDAS-X. Some of the changes already planned are: o augmentation/modification of the Unidata Tcl/Tk GUI o documentation for Unidata Tcl/Tk GUI o development of ADDE servers for imagery in GINI format (GINI is the format of the imagery in the NOAAPORT channel 1 and 2 streams) o development of ADDE servers for imagery in TeraScan (tm) format o development of ADDE servers for DMSP imagery o other 9). We have released a new distribution of ldm-mcidas decoders that are Y2K capable and McIDAS-X 7.60 compatible. The new distribution is ldm-mcidas Version 7.6.1. 10). Unidata McIDAS-OS2 is no longer a supported package. It support was sunset on July 31, 1999. 11). If you are not already transitioning to use of the newer ADDE routines in McIDAS-X, you need to start doing so now. A large number of old, non-ADDE routines will be sunset in upcoming Unidata McIDAS releases. Please review: Release Notes http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/packages/mcidas/mcx/release_notes.html and Sunset Items http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/packages/mcidas/mcx/sunset.html for further details. 12). If you are not already using the XCD package (bundled with Unidata McIDAS versions 7+), you will need to do so immediately. The MD, GRID, PROFILER.CDF, UNIDATAS, and ADMIN.MSG products that were included in the Unidata-Wisconsin datastream were removed on July 1, 1999. XCD decoders and IDD conveyance of global surface, upper air, ship/buoy, airep/pirep, synoptic, fous, NCEP model data, etc. allows any site to create global data files usable by Unidata McIDAS. In order to conserve funds, and possible redirect some to enhance imagery products, we need to stop providing the above, redundant data in the Unidata- Wisconsin datastream. The user name & password information for access to Unidata McIDAS is: machine: ftp.unidata.ucar.edu user: umcidas pass: XXXXXX directory for X: unix/760 The user name and password are the same for both FTP and web access to the distribution. We encourage you to grab the distribution files through the web access that we have provided. Please review the Unidata McIDAS documentation at: McIDAS-X http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/packages/mcidas/mcx Please keep us informed as to your progress. >Thank you. You are welcome. >Sincerely, >Dr. Mace Bentley >Kentucky Climate Center >Department of Geography & Geology >Western Kentucky University Tom Yoksas
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